Rush of Blood to the Head
by madforamanda
Summary: Olivia Sardonna was an expert at taking care of herself. She was forced to grow up quick and forced to fight to survive. By some strange chance she comes into possession of an item that Kylo Ren needs. Neither was prepared for the journey their meeting would lead them on. Ratings may go up for possible mature scenes.


A light sheen of sweat covered her brow, her green shirt was starting to stick to her lean body uncomfortably and the brown leather pack she wore was becoming heavy on her shoulders. She had been walking for hours now, carefully navigating her way around trees and roots in search for Maz Kanata's castle. She had no idea where she actually was. Last she remembered was walking the markets on Tatooine, eyes watching for an easy pickpocket. She had her nimble fingers deep in someone's money pouch when she was snatched by the waist and dragged to a small and dark hut. Before anything else could happen, she swung a sharp elbow into her closest assailant and a swift kick in the face to another. She wasn't too keen on sticking around for whatever they had planned to do with her.

The thief dashed back through the doorway, sand flying up around her boots as she ran. She felt the heat of the suns pounding down on her back but she kept running. This wouldn't have been the first time she was caught stealing. She had the scars to prove it.

"Hey!" A friendly voice yelled at her. She slowed to a stop when she saw a handsome man waving her into a small shack.

"They won't find you in here." He smiled at her. She looked back from the direction she came and looked towards the stranger. He looked kind. She was also exhausted. Once in the shack he informed her that he had a ship and he could take her to wherever she wanted to go, free of charge. It seemed too good to be true but she was truly desperate. With a grin she took his outstretched hand and followed him.

She had awakened in a small clearing with his ship docked next to her, gun pointed at her chest. There she went again, making poor and terrible choices. She looked down the barrel of his blaster wearily.

"I have your money. You will be left with supplies. You will walk away." The handsome stranger said, cocking the gun at her as she lay on the ground.

"But where will I go?" She pleaded, knowing it was almost certain death out on this mysterious planet.

"That is no importance to me." His tan face was smug as she juggled her coin purse in his hand. She knew not his name, only of his empty promise she dumbly agreed to.

She picked up the brown pack he had thrown out at her. She shifted it onto her back and scowled as he turned his back and walked away from her. She looked around the clearing unsure of which direction to move first. She hoped that for once in her sorry life she would be fortunate enough to find someone who would truly help her.

"Girl." She heard him yell back at her.

"What."

"Maz Kanata's Castle. Follow the sun." And with that she was left with only the clothes on her back and whatever he gave her in the pack. As she trekked through the forest she thanked whatever deity existed that she was in good shape or else this would have been much more difficult. Her legs were sculpted from her old days of training, her arms were strong from the manual labor she did to get by. Her raven hair was collected in a network of small braids above her head, some tendrils escaping their bounds and framing her face. Her eyes were a curious mix of black and gold, one of her most captivating features she was sure. She was undoubtedly a sight for sore eyes. Her olive skin and dark hair paired with her strange eyes often led to the men of the cities to think her beautiful. They set out to try and capture her and make her theirs. They were foolish. She belonged to no one.

It was getting too silent for her taste. It was just her and the sound of her footsteps beating against the sodden moss and mud. She started getting a disturbing feeling, she felt the hairs on her neck prick up. Something around her felt off. The air felt too thick, every breath was more and more of an effort. This wasn't right. She noticed her breathing had quickened to the point of hyperventilation. She slid to the ground holding herself against a tree, her chest heaving.

"My name is Olivia Sardonna and I am not afraid. I am Olivia Sardonna and I am not afraid." She squeezed her eyes shut trying to silence the too prominent silence. Her breathing calmed. Everything still felt off. Olivia decided now would be a good time to empty out the contents of her pack the stranger had left her with. She saw a few ration packets and a large canteen of water. She decided she can make those last a few days. She saw an old and sharp blade with a wooden handle. She rotated it in her hand and hurled it to the tree opposite of her. With a thud, the blade made its mark exactly where she wanted it. _Good_ , she thought, _at least one measly weapon_.

Olivia walked over to the tree where she expertly hit her mark and yanked out the blade when she heard a beep coming from her overturned pack. She creeped towards the sound, blade in hand.

Olivia kicked the pack over with her foot and found the source of the beeping. There was a small metal box with red lights and engravings on it, its purpose was unknown. She picked it up cautiously, not sure what it was. There seemed to be no way to open the small box or a way to silence the beeping. She pressed a button and winced, prepared for an alarm to ring. Nothing.

"Huh." She mused. She pondered just tossing it and not looking back but wondered if maybe it was important. _Maz Kanata_. She thought again. Maybe whoever that was could tell her what it is. And why it was stowed in her pack. Olivia gathered her belongings back into her pack and took a sip of water from her canteen. She used her teeth to open one of the ration packets when suddenly she heard the sounds of boots stomping through the forest. She paused and listened. _More than one_ , she thought, _it must be a group? A hunting party?_

She quickly threw her rations in her pack and swung it around her back. She had a black scarf around her neck and gathered it up over her head and half of her face. Not wanting to take any chances, Olivia scrambled up the tree behind her, perching on one of the higher branches and blending into the leaves.

"Ren said the coordinates led to here." She heard a male voice say. She peeked her head around a branch, risking a look and her breath caught in her throat. About ten Storm Troopers were tromping through the grounds only yards away from her tree.

"Fuck, fuck, fuck." She whispered, gathering the scarf closer to her head. Last thing she needed was to get mixed up with the First Order. Olivia had an automatic hatred for the troopers. Throughout her travels she has seen too many villages wrecked at their hands. Too many children killed.

The Troopers were definitely looking for something, she figured. She heard them speak of coordinates and codes and a person named Ren. She hoped they found whatever it was fast so she could carry on her search to see Maz Kanata. Plus, the sky was getting darker by the minute. She was losing precious traveling time and she doubted the forest would be a safe place to sleep. Just as the Troopers walked past her, the strange box beeped. They stopped.

"Did you hear that?" One asked, lifting up a hand to silence the others.

"Yes." Another answered. Olivia began to sweat and her nails dug into the tree bark.

"It must be close. I think the sound came from your right. FN-1401. Go look for it." The one who spoke first ordered. The second Trooper obeyed, walking right underneath her tree. She tried to quietly shift herself around a branch out of his sight. Her foot slipped.

The Trooper stopped in his tracks looking up into her hideout. He placed one hand on the tree as if looking to hoist himself up. She cursed inwardly, she supposed this was how she would die. She would die at 23. A blaster shot would be quick. The universe was already going to shit so maybe it would be better to not see it go completely to the First Order. Yeah, dying could work out.

"Hey!" She jumped slightly and reached for the small blade. Luckily, the call wasn't directed to her.

"What?" the Trooper closest to her asked. A second group of about ten more Troopers paraded into the area.

"The signal is gone. We are to return to the ship. Ren will be unpleased." They all groaned, clearly not excited to go back to this "Ren" character. To Olivia's relief they left, leaving only footprints in the mud as reminders of what they were. Her head was still intact. She let out a sigh of relief, her full lips parting into a smile. Olivia stayed perched in the tree for a few more minutes, wanting to give a wide berth. She was about to let herself down from her branch when she was suddenly wrenched backwards, crashing into leaves and twigs. She landed on her back with the wind knocked out of her. She gasped for air like a fish out of water. She knew she didn't fall. She had sure footing. She was forced from the tree.

Olivia had the sharpest pain in her back and lungs. She lay there on the wet ground desperate for the return of her breath when she heard a pair of heavy footsteps next to her.

"Get up." A deep voice commanded. She struggled to stand. "UP." The voice commanded once more, and with that Olivia was lifted from the ground by some unforeseen force. Her toes barely brushed the ground as she hovered there in front of a tall and imposing masked figure. He wore only black, a long dark cloak and metal mask. She had never seen anything like him before. She swung her legs trying to reach the ground again, but he held her suspended in midair. Her scarf slipped from her face and head and landed against her chest. Her full face was exposed to this creature.

"You have something I want. Hand it over, girl." With a wave of his hand he set her tumbling down on the floor and she rubbed her neck.

"I am no longer a girl, I am a woman, you know?" She glared at him and was immediately hoisted back into the air, her lungs feeling like a hand was squeezing them tightly.

"Are you going to give me what I want?" The man demanded in his deep and almost mechanical voice. Olivia had absolutely no idea what he was talking about. She had nothing. She was nothing.

"I have nothing." She struggled to say. "Put me down!" He released her once more and she dropped to her knees. The cloaked man walked over and knocked her back over with his foot. Every time she tried to rise he would shove her down again. Olivia took a swing at him.

"Fucking stop!" She yelled, eyes furious. "If you would at least elaborate then maybe we can figure out what it is you are looking for. She propped herself up on her elbows, still on the cold forest floor. The man knelt down next to her.

"I am looking for a box. It has what I need. Last I checked the coordinates tracked it to this specific point. You have it. Do not lie." His voice was deep and calm. If he wasn't continuously choking and kicking her it would have been soothing.

Olivia tried to mask her face into a blank stare. The box in her pack must be important then. If she gave it to him would he leave her alone? No. He would most likely kill her either way.

"I do not have what you seek." She lied flatly, staring into the darkness of his mask. Suddenly she felt a creeping in her skull. It was almost as if ice and fire had taken a hold of different parts of her mind. She shut it out. She put out the fires in her mind and let the ice melt away. She shook her head and was instantly dizzy. The man before her started to spin. She felt the fire and ice again, this time stronger but she continued to will it away.

"Are you doing this?" She spoke through gritted teeth. Even though he wore a mask he tilted his head curiously.

"Are you blocking me out?" He sounded menacing.

"Of where?" Sweat continued to drip down her face and neck and her mind burned. She felt ants crawling into her ears and eating away at her. It hurt so much. Her hands came to her head in fists and she strained to remain under control. She just wanted the pain to go away.

"YOUR MIND." The man shouted, and a flash of red light came at his side. He held a crackling red lightsaber, its raw energy eager to maim. She had never seen one up close. Olivia tried to comprehend what he was saying but she didn't think she could hold on any longer. She didn't think she could keep out the fires and ants much longer. Finally, her bag beeped. The pain stopped. The man put his saber back into his cloak and reached over to her pack. He rummaged through her things and pulled out the metal box.

"Do you know what happens to liars?" He turned the box in his hand. He bent down once more, perched in front of her sweating and broken form. The pain was gone but she felt sick. He put a hand on her face but it was anything but delicate. With the last muster of life she had left in her, she turned her head and bit his palm as forcefully as she could. That was the last thing Olivia remembered before she fell into the dark.


End file.
